Local congressman believes Gadhafi's 42-year reign in Libya is over

WASHINGTON — Rep. Elton Gallegly said Monday that Col. Moammar Gadhafi's 42-year reign as the leader of Libya is over and that it's just a matter of time before he steps down or is forcibly removed from power.

"There is nothing left for the Gadhafi regime in Libya. That's gone," the Simi Valley Republican said. "He's either going to do one of three things: Either somehow escape to someplace that is going to provide him with a sanctuary. Or he's going to step down with conditions and be taken into custody. Or he'll be shot."

Gadhafi remained in hiding on Monday, hours after rebel forces rolled into Tripoli on Sunday night and captured most of Libya's capital city. Rebel leaders said they had no idea where Gadhafi was or whether he was still in Tripoli. The Obama administration said the U.S. had no indication that he had left Libya.

Gallegly, who met Gadhafi as part of a bipartisan congressional delegation that traveled to Tripoli in 2004, described the Libyan ruler as "a madman" and said it has been obvious for several months that his days in power are numbered.

Even so, Gallegly said he has serious concerns about who's going to take over the helm of the North African country once Gadhafi is gone.

The United States and other countries now recognize the rebel National Transitional Council as the legitimate government of Libya, but "a real concern in my mind is the uncertainty and who the rebels really are," Gallegly said.

"There doesn't seem to be any real leader on any of this," Gallegly said. "There hasn't been somebody who stepped out like Gadhafi did 40 years ago" when a revolution brought down the regime at the time.

Gallegly said he's unwilling to see the United States pour billions of dollars into Libya to help establish a new government until he finds out "who we're really supporting."

"It's a difficult and complex situation, but the outcome can have a profound effect on international economics," Gallegly said.

Another concern, Gallegly said, is that Libya doesn't have a strong military like Egypt's armed forces, which he said did a good job of peacekeeping after the ouster of then-President Hosni Mubarak in February.

"There really isn't much left of the Libyan military to do that, which gives me some concern for the innocent Libyan people," Gallegly said.

Gallegly had been skeptical about the United States taking part in the five-month, NATO-led bombing campaign to aid the rebels fighting Gadhafi's forces. He said he still believes it's too soon to say whether or not the campaign was the right thing to do.

"I don't think we can say right now whether it was the right call or the wrong call," he said. "There are more questions than there are answers."